RIL moves SC against Bom HC's gas pricing ruling

New Delhi, July 4 (PTI) A day after Indian industrialist
Anil Ambani-led Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL)
petitioned the Supreme Court of India seeking modification in
the Bombay High Court order, elder brother Mukesh-run Reliance
Industries Ltd (RIL) moved the apex court challenging the same
judgement that asked it to supply 28 MMSCMD gas to RNRL at USD
2.34 per mmbtu.

Reliance Industries Ltd in its appeal today alleged that
the high court had erred in deciding the three terms --
quantity, tenure and price of gas supply -- to power plants of
RNRL affiliates as the court had no jurisdiction.

The high court on June 15 had asked RIL to honour a 2005
family agreement to supply 28 million cubic meters per day of
gas from its Krishna-Godavari basin fields to RNRL at USD 2.34
per mmBtu for 17 years from the date of setting up of the
Dadri power plant.

"The high court as a company court exercising
jurisdiction under Section 392 of the Company Act, 1956, had
no power to modify the scheme of reconstruction of a company
by demerger as approved almost unanimously by 99.9998 per cent
shareholders and creditors and sanctioned by the court..." RIL
said in appeal.

According to the petition, the supply of gas as per the
MoU was subject to all necessary approvals as required under
the Production Sharing Contract and the government policy.

The high court, while concluding that the MoU of June 18,
2005 was binding on the companies, overlooked the fact that
obligations contained in the MoU contemplated approval of the
government and the same were not absolute. PTI